"No, Serena,” Shay said, her voice suddenly deathly serious. “There's nothing more important in my life than our friendship. I just wish I had come up with the answer immediately."
Serena's heart warmed. “As usual, you're taking responsibility for something beyond your control. I understand that you're an overachiever, but what happened to me was not—nor is it now—your responsibility."
"Hey, what are we without our friends?"
And in that instant, Serena knew just how much she meant to Shay—and how much Shay missed her. “I'd be there if I could,” she said. “But under the circumstances..."
Which are getting murkier, by the way.
But she couldn't tell Shay about Garrett just yet. That was something she wanted to savor for a while before she shared it with anyone else.
"Alright, look,” Shay said. “I've only got a few more minutes. Got a meeting to run to. Here's what I thought about. You were accused of having an affair with our CEO. Yeah, you were most definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time when he died. And the fact that you shooed out the secretary he was screwing when he had his massive heart attack—who still won't come forward, the bitch, and you won't sell her out, silly you—left you in a very compromising position. Particularly since you were the one to call 911. No one believed it wasn't you who'd been doing the old bird and so you got shit canned. The Board looked great for taking swift and decisive action. The widow got her justice. And the idiot secretary kept her job."
"She needed it more than I did,” Serena reminded her friend. “She's a single mom. Two kids. And no deadbeat husband to collect support from because she doesn't even know who the father—or fathers—is."
"Yeah. You're making me feel sympathetic to her plight and all warm and fuzzy inside,” Shay said. “Meanwhile, your name ends up in the papers, and you're the one the Board fires."
"Well. I had a bigger savings account and no kids to support. Maybe it was for the best."
"Oh. My. God.” Shay let out a sigh of exasperation. “Do you want your job back, or not?"
"I do miss working,” she said without hesitation. Her drawings were beginning to resemble gray cumulus clouds. Clearly, she had issues. “What do I have to do?"
"Again, I'm so sorry I didn't think of this earlier. It's just so fucking simple that I feel like a dolt for not coming up with it earlier.” Shay paused for a moment, then said, “All you have to do is visit your gynecologist and ask her to sign an affidavit I draw up."
"I'm sorry, what?” Serena shook her head. “My gyno? Whatever for? And what kind of affi—oh. Oh, holy fuck.” Realization dawned quick and it dawned bright.
"See what I'm saying?” She could hear the smile in Shay's voice. “You see your doctor and she certifies that you are, in fact, a virgin. Changes the whole Goddamn ballgame. When we present that affidavit to the Board, they'll either immediately reinstate you—with a compensatory raise, by the way—or we'll take them to court and seek damages. A very hefty settlement that will—"
"Whoa!” Serena's head spun.
"What?” Shay demanded. “You want your job back, right? Or at the very least, the chance to vindicate yourself—prove your innocence, clear your name?"
"Well, yeah, sure. But...” Serena sat back in the barstool and frowned. “It's really not that simple anymore.” Because of Garrett. “I met someone here, Shay. And he's ... amazing.” Suddenly, she wasn't so sure she wanted to leave Silver to return to her old life. And hadn't she told Garrett she wasn't intending to leave? She'd basically committed herself to him last night. And that thought sent a wave of excitement through her ten times more powerful than the prospect of getting her job back.
"You meet guys all the time, Serena. You're gorgeous. You'll meet a new one in New York when you come back."
Serena laughed. “Not like this one. He's incredible, Shay. Just wait until you meet him. You'll know exactly why I chose to—oh.” The breath escaped her on a hard rush of air. “Shit."
"What?” Shay asked, sounding deeply concerned. “What is it, Serena? What's wrong?"
She sunk a little lower in her chair. “Look, I appreciate that you want to help me. And you came up with a really great plan. Except that...” She cringed a little. “My doctor won't be able to sign that affidavit."
"Why on earth not?"
Serena gave her friend a few moments to draw the appropriate conclusion. A loud shriek on the other end of the line forced her to jerk the phone away from her ear. Serena let out another long-suffering sigh. Waiting a decent interval, she returned the receiver to the ear and said, “Now that you've got that out of your system."
"Holy fucking shit! We've been on the phone for, like, fifteen minutes, and you are just now telling me you're not a virgin anymore?"
Serena couldn't suppress the smile that curved her lips. “Well ... yes."
"Oh. My. God."
She laughed. “Really, is it that shocking? I mean, I'm twenty-seven, for God's sake. Doesn't that make me the oldest virgin on the planet?"
"Not on the planet, but definitely in New York."
"I just really wanted it to be special. With someone special. And,” she said with conviction that rang in her own ears, “I know this sounds totally corny, but I just knew, all this time, that I was waiting for this guy."